[Asterisk-Users] Sprint Nextel sueing over VoIP patents

[John Todd]

At 12:05 PM -0700 10/5/05, John Todd wrote:
>At 2:43 PM -0700 10/4/05, trixter http://www.0xdecafbad.com wrote:
>>
>>Sprint Nextel is sueing vonage, voiceglo and theglobe.com for infringing
>>on VoIP patents.  Sprint Nextel claims to have about 100 patents on VoIP
>>technologies.  Does anyone know which ones this article is talking
>>about, and if so does asterisk have any of those features?
>>The reason I am asking is that the article is vague, Vonage uses a
>>fairly standard codec set, I dont know about the others.  So if its not
>>codecs I wonder if its something so generic that the patent would be
>>tossed out upon challenge.
>>Anyone thinking about doing a VoIP business may want to get more info
>>before proceeding since they may not have the millinos vonage has to
>>fight this.
>>
>>http://kansascity.bizjournals.com/kansascity/stories/2005/10/03/daily23.html
>>--
>>Trixter http://www.0xdecafbad.com     Bret McDanel
>>UK +44 870 340 4605   Germany +49 801 777 555 3402
>>US +1 360 207 0479 or +1 516 687 5200
>>FreeWorldDialup: 635378
>
>
>
>This perhaps is quite relevant to the Asterisk community.
>
>While I don't know the specifics about Vonage, I do know that they 
>have been rumored to have (in the past, or present) used Asterisk in 
>their core for some services.  (Voicemail?  Conference?  Messages?) 
>This, however, is not confirmed.
>
>http://www.ilocus.com/ui_dataFiles/news18aug05.htm
>http://www.google.com/search?num=50&hl=en&lr=&newwindow=1&safe=off&c2coff=1&q=%22vonage+uses+asterisk%22&btnG=Search
>
>According to public information, Voiceglo uses IAX and Asterisk:
>
>  http://lists.digium.com/pipermail/asterisk-users/2004-February/036311.html
>  http://www.business2.com/b2/web/articles/0,17863,1059204,00.html
>
>FYI: Voiceglo and theglobe.com are the same company for all intents 
>and purposes.
>
>Therefore, I am very interested to see if this is merely 
>co-incidental or if there is a reason that Sprint picked out two 
>providers that use Asterisk in their core.  Despite hysteria or 
>misinformation on this (and other) lists, there is no direct 
>information that I've seen that this is Sprint making a blanket 
>patent lawsuit against anyone using VoIP.  Perhaps this is just some 
>specific feature that they have a legitimate patent on which has 
>been infringed.  I doubt this is a codec patent issue, nor an 
>equipment patent issue (as previously discussed on -biz list.)
>
>Is there anyone with better detail on the lawsuit specifics able to comment?
>
>JT

To answer my own question: no, it doesn't seem like there is anything 
Asterisk-specific in the suit.  It seems that Sprint is claiming that 
they own the rights to pretty much any VoIP technology.  Carry on, 
everyone; this will be thrown out with the rest of the garbage after 
Vonage and others spend huge amounts of time and effort staving off 
the frivolity lawyers.  <sigh>

JT